Letting Go and Hanging On
by pyroesque26
Summary: When Jason quits the basketball team, all his friends set out to find out why. Along the way, he learns what family truly means, and maybe, just maybe, might find love in a certain playmaker.


Letting Go and Hanging On

_Summary: When Jason quits the basketball team, all his friends set out to find out why. Along the way, he learns what family truly means, and maybe, just maybe, might find love in a certain playmaker._

_A/N: This is a long one-shot. HSM just aired in this part of the world: South East Asia, and I completely fell in love with Jason and Kelsi. The ending bit was way too cute. A little disgustingly cute, and a little clichéd, in the sense that everyone suddenly finds someone to be with, but cute. _

_Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical._

The basketball team stared after Jason as he walked out of the gym with his head bowed. Troy, Chad and Zeke all stood at the front of the basketball team, mouths agape in shock. Basketball was as much his life as it was theirs, aside from Troy's singing and Zeke's baking. It came out of the blue, although they had noticed behavioural changes in him throughout the week.

Troy stared at the number on Jason's jersey, and refused to believe what was happening. Jason, his best friend besides Chad and Zeke, who had been pretty much been there for him through hell and back, was quitting basketball.

"Alright, well, let's continue practice!" Coach Bolton said. When no one moved, he snapped, "Now!"

There were squeaks and the hurried running of the rest of the team but the three just continued to stare at the closed doors of the gym.

"Dude, what just happened?" Chad asked, breaking the tense silence.

He looked at Troy who shrugged, and to Zeke, who looked like he was in shock.

"I don't know, man," Troy answered, shaking his head. He turned to join the others practice. "I don't know."

"You mean you guys don't know why? How can you not, you guys are best friends," Gabriella said as she and Troy walked home together after school.

Chad and Taylor were on a date, though Troy suspected that Chad might be sulking the whole time. Zeke, Sharpay and Ryan headed over to Evans Mansion to have some of Zeke's cooking. Baking was comfort for Zeke.

"Yea, I mean, he comes into the gym while we were doing drills and suddenly he just says," he paused for dramatic effect, "'Coach, I'm quitting the team.' And then he hands us his jerseys and walks out the gym. Very cryptic, don't you think?"

"Hmm. Yeah," Gabriella agreed, nodding. "Has he been acting weird or not himself all week?"

"Well, we noticed he wasn't spazzing out like usual, and he's been really quiet lately. And I think he blew off three cheerleaders this week," Troy answered. "As far as I remember, he's never blown off cheerleaders."

"Yes, very weird," Gabriella said, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, guys," Kelsi said, catching up to them. "What's up?"

"Jason quit the team," Troy answered.

"What? Are you sure this is Jason we're talking about?" Kelsi asked, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"Exactly. Do you know anything about it? I mean, you guys are pretty close right?" Troy asked anxiously.

"Well, yeah," she answered, the four words Troy said to her repeating in her head over and over. "Do you want me to talk to him for you?"

"Sure, that'd be great," Troy said. "Thanks, Kels."

"I'll call you tonight if I find out anything," Kelsi said, nodding in Gabriella's direction.

"Thanks, Kelsi. This means a lot to the boys," Gabriella said.

"What do you mean?"

"Chad and Zeke are sort of still in shock when I last saw them," Troy answered.

"Oh. Well, I have to go," Kelsi said. "Bye, guys." She turned and ran off to the destination she knew by heart.

Kelsi found him there just as he expected. He was just sitting on the highly uncomfortable stone bench, his head bowed and his hands clasped together. Seeing him like this, she couldn't help but feel her heart go out to him.

Contrary to popular belief, she and Jason did not hit off after the game. Sure, they went to the party together, but they agreed to remain friends at the end of the night. She, however, couldn't deny that she did have a crush on him.

"Jason?"

He visibly jumped but relaxed when he saw who it was. "Oh, hey, Kels."

"I heard you quit the team," she said, going straight to the point. Jason hated it when people beat around the bush with him. She knew that he hated how everyone thought he was stupid, just because he spazzed out occasionally.

"From who?"

"Team captain, himself. I bumped into him and Gabriella on my way home," Kelsi answered, taking a sear next to him. "They all want to know why. _I_ want to know why. Basketball is your life as much as music is mine."

"I finally made contact with my dad," he told her abruptly in a soft voice.

"Oh." Her face fell slightly. She vaguely remembered that Jason told her his parents had been divorced since his little sister could talk. "And?"

"He doesn't want to see me. Apparently, he's got a new family to think about," he said bitterly.

Kelsi frowned. What kind of father didn't want to see his own son? She took one glance at Jason and her features softened. "I'm so sorry, Jase," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

He shrugged her hand off and stood up from the bench, his hands shoved in his pocket. "It doesn't matter," he said quietly. "I shouldn't have been so stupid as to even try to even talk to him. I mean, he left when I was five. How was I supposed to know that he had moved on and married and had kids?"

"It's not your fault, Jason," Kelsi said, trying to reason with him.

"Then why did he leave? Why did he leave my mom to raise two kids on her own?" Jason asked himself angrily. "Mom threw out all the pictures of our dad. Jessie doesn't even know his name."

"How'd you get his number then?"

"I found an old cell phone number in my mom's drawer when I was looking for a stapler. It had dad's name underneath so I thought I'd try it out. It worked, and I don't know. I should've expected it. He hadn't wanted me then, why on earth did I expect that he'd want me now?"

"Jason," she whispered, standing up to stand behind him. Tentatively, she wrapped her arms around him, feeling him tense up at her touch. "No one deserves this."

"I love my mom, Kels. But sometimes, a son just needs his father to be there," he said. He finally relaxed in her embrace, accepting the comfort given to him by this small girl.

Kelsi stopped playing and sighed, staring at the notes on her music sheet. She was at home after dropping off Jason at his house, who'd smiled in appreciation. Her heart fluttered at the thought of his smile.

"Hey, sweetheart, why'd you stop playing?" Mark Nielson asked, walking into the living room. He loved listening to his daughter playing the piano.

"Hey, daddy. It's nothing. I just have a lot on my mind," Kelsi said.

"Budge up, Kels," Mark said, slipping onto the bench next to her and started playing. "A penny for your thoughts, then?"

"I think my thoughts are worth a lot more, dad," she joked, laughing quietly.

Her parents, unlike Jason's, were happily married and still very much in love. She and her dad were extremely close. Mark devoted more of his time with his family, rather than work. He'd told his boss that if he decided to overwork him then he'd quit, because overwork meant that the extra time needed to meet up the workload demand would shorten his time with his family.

"It's Jason," she finally said. She could feel her dad tense up. "Daddy, relax. It's nothing serious. Well, it is, to him anyway. You know how I told you a couple of weeks ago, on the day before he went out with you and the twins to that basketball game, that his parents had been divorced a long time ago and that it would mean a lot to him if you took him to the game?"

Mark nodded. "Well, he did seem like a nice guy."

"He is a nice guy, dad," she said, rolling her eyes. "He called his dad."

"Oh. And what'd the guy say?"

"His dad doesn't want to see him. Or get to know him," Kelsi said sadly.

"Well, that's just wrong," Mark said. He stopped playing. "Being a father comes with a lot of responsibility. This guy just can't leave his son hanging like that!"

"I know, daddy," she said, putting a hand on her dad's arm to calm him down. Whenever it came to family issues, Mark was very passionate about it. His own father had neglected him as a child, and he refused to be just like him. "But what can you do about it really?"

Mark sighed. "You're right," he said, putting an arm around his daughter's shoulders and kissing the top of her head. "There's nothing much I can do, is there?"

"No, daddy. I'm afraid not," she said, feeling the tears well up in her eyes.

She wished Jason had what she had with her father.

"Jessie, Jason, honey, dinner's ready," Martha Cross called from downstairs.

"Be down in a minute!" he called back. For the past fifteen minutes or so, he'd been staring at the picture of the basketball team and thought about his rash decision to quit the team. He'd been upset.

He first joined the team because it had been the only connection to his dad. But since his father obviously didn't want to know how he was, he didn't think basketball wasn't worth it anymore.

According to his mom, his father had been a basketball player during his college years. His mom had majored in Music, and was a popular local singer until she got married to his dad. They'd met after one of his matches, and they'd hit it off straight after. His mom had ended the story with them being too young, which followed bad and rash decisions. Jason knew it was partly his fault; his mom had gotten pregnant with him during her final months of college.

Jason could tell, though, that his mother missed his father sometimes. She hadn't dated since the divorce because she was too busy trying to raise them.

He pushed himself up from the bed and walked out, literally bumping into his younger sister.

"Watch where you're going!" she snapped.

"Creature," he mumbled, following behind.

"I heard that!"

"Whatever."

"Are you two fighting again?" Martha asked as the two walked into the kitchen.

"He started it! If he watched where he was going, this wouldn't have happened!" Jessie said angrily.

"Hey, if your ego wasn't so big-"

"Oh, be quiet, both of you. Can't we just have a nice, quiet dinner for once?" Martha snapped.

"Sorry, mom," the siblings mumbled.

Martha sighed, rubbing her temples. "It's alright. Just, please, both of you, can't you guys go one day without fighting? It's bad enough that I don't see you guys much at all, I just want what time we have together to be spent not arguing, okay?"

They both nodded.

"Are you working the night shift tonight?" Jessie asked, scooping herself some pasta and passing it over to Jason. Their mother was a doctor at the local hospital, so their financial status was fairly okay. Martha earned enough to keep her kids and the house.

"Unfortunately, yes. Which means that I'll leave by eleven tonight, and probably won't be back for breakfast, so Jason, it's your turn tomorrow," Martha said, dropping her disappointed tone.

"Sure," he mumbled.

Martha noticed the way Jason slumped in his chair. He barely made any noise, let alone a coherent word. Whenever he answered a question, all he did was grunt and mumble. And he played with his food. Pasta was his favourite. She grew worried.

The table became silent, except for the clink of metal against glass. Eventually, Jessie finished and after washing her plate, she walked out of the kitchen, leaving mother and son to talk. She had saw the way Martha kept shooting worried glances at Jason and decided that she should leave the two to talk. Although she didn't show it much, she was just as worried about Jason as her mother was. Jason, simply put, did not keep quiet during dinner, except that one time when his girlfriend in the eighth grade dumped him.

"So, what's going on?" Martha asked in a gentle tone, putting down her fork.

"Nothing's going on," Jason said, shrugging, staring at the one piece of pasta that was stuck to the fork. He twirled the fork around with his fingers.

"Sweetie, you haven't touched your food since dinner started. I can read you like an open book, you know that, Jason."

"I know, mom," he said quietly.

"Then tell mommy what's wrong, sweetheart," she said gently.

"I called dad," he said, preparing for the worst. Calling his father would be breaking the unspoken rule between them.

He looked up from his food and looked at his mother's shocked face. There was also anger, and something akin to sympathy.

"You're mad, aren't you?" he asked.

His mother's features softened at his tone. "I just want to know why," she said gently.

Jason shrugged. "I guess," he stopped and sighed. "I don't know. I saw his old cell phone number in your drawer, and thought I'd give it a try."

"And he answered?" He nodded. "And what did he say?"

He swallowed the lump in his throat. "He said he didn't want to see me," he said, his voice cracking. There was no use trying to hide his feelings from his mom.

"Oh, sweetie," Martha said, pulling Jason close to her as the unmistakeable tears slid down his face and fell with a soft pat onto her shoulder.

Outside, Jessie cried watching her mother and brother embrace, wishing that she could join them.

"Jason, Jessie, I'm leaving!" Martha called.

"Kay, bye, mom!" Jessie shouted back.

"Don't worry about locking the door, okay, sweetie? Now the both of you, get to bed. It's already half past ten, and you've got school tomorrow," Martha said. "I love you!" she shouted and left.

Jessie strained her ears to hear for her mother's car to drive out. When it was silent once more, except for the pulsating beats coming from her older brother's room, she entered Jason's room without knocking.

"What do you want now?" he asked, voice slightly thick from the crying session earlier on.

"I heard your convo with mom in the kitchen," she said slowly. "Did you – um – really tried to call dad?"

Jason sighed and lowered the volume on his computer. He leaned his elbows against the table, staring at the picture of him, Jessie and their mother during last year's Mother's Day celebration. They looked happy enough without a father.

"Yes, Jess, I did," he said. "And before you ask why, I really don't know." He looked up at her. "Maybe I just wanted him to know that his first son is still alive and breathing, you know?"

Jessie just shrugged. "I don't know. I can barely remember how he looks like. Mom burned all the pictures, remember?"

"Yeah," he said. He remembered getting angry at her for that. "Listen, if it's alright with you, I really don't want to talk about this right now. Goodnight, Jess."

Jessie rolled her eyes. She bent down to hug him and kiss his cheek. "Even if dad doesn't want to see you, Jase, just now me and mom love you, okay?"

"I know," he said, climbing into bed.

Jessie walked towards the door and switched off his lights. Just before she closed the door, Jason called out to her.

"Yeah?" She turned to look at the back of his head. She heard him take in a deep breath.

"I love you, too, sis. Both you _and_ mom," he said.

_Nice to know_, she thought and finally left his room to let him sleep in peace.

Jason was stuffing papers into his locker, hair slightly dishevelled. He had woken up early to prepare breakfast for him and his sister. He scratched the back of his head and sighed. He hadn't really gotten much sleep last night after Jessie left his room. He only slept for about three hours.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Troy, Chad and Zeke walking towards him. Running was definitely out of the question. So when they finally reached him, he decided to have the first word.

"Hey, guys," he said, nodding to each guy in turn.

"Yeah, hey, Jason," Troy said, greeting him in the usual way they did. "So, uh, how's it going?"

"Nothing much," he said shrugging. "Me and Jess got into a fight, homework, making breakfast this morning for me and Jess. The usual."

"Listen, do you think we can talk about why you quit the basketball team?" Chad asked, jumping in before he could continue.

"Look, guys, I know I didn't explain anything, and I intend to. Just, not right now. I'm sorry," he said, slamming his locker door shut and walking away.

Troy punched Chad's shoulder. "Way to go, Chad," he said, rolling his eyes.

"Well?" Gabriella asked, walking up to them with Taylor.

"Nothing," Troy answered. "Chad ruined the 'casual talk before dropping the bomb' approach."

Taylor punched his other shoulder. Gabriella had filled her in on what was going on with the basketball team after all Chad managed to mumble on their date last night was pretty much close to nothing.

"Everyone's talking about it," Sharpay said, arriving suddenly with Ryan. She gave Zeke a kiss on the cheek. "Apparently, word got out that Cross quit the basketball team."

"Yeah, and the cheerleaders are staying away from him. Apparently, he betrayed them," Ryan said. Sharpay scoffed and rolled her eyes at that.

"Hey, where's the small girl?" Chad asked.

"Kelsi," Taylor corrected.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he said. Taylor punched him again. "Easy with the arm, Tay!"

"Well, last I saw, Kelsi was in the music room," Sharpay answered. Just then, the warning bell sounded. "Come on, Zeke. Let's go." She took his arm and walked away with Ryan heading the opposite way to his class.

"Yeah, see you guys later," Troy said, and the group dispersed in different directions.

Kelsi was spending her free period in the music room as usual. Her fingers glided over the keys lightly, and she closed her eyes as she listened to the music. It was times like these that she loved the most. Having friends was great, but right now, all she wanted was some time alone to think over Jason's problem.

It was obvious that he was hurting, that his father's rejection was nothing short of like plunging a knife into his back. She had seen him enter the school looking like he didn't sleep all night. That only proved to worry her even more.

Her father had offered to talk to Jason for her, but she politely refused to ask her dad not to do so.

"I thought I'd find you here."

Kelsi turned around to find Jason standing awkwardly at the door. The both of them had free period together, but Jason usually spent it at practice and herself in the music room. But now that he quit, she supposed, since he was standing there, that they were going to be spending free period together now.

"Where else would I be?"

"Exactly," he said, nodding at her. He walked towards her and slid onto the bench next to her. "Do you mind?"

"No, I don't mind," she said, rolling her eyes, her fingers moving once more to play 'What I've Been Looking For'. "I expect you've been avoiding the basketball team?"

He shrugged. "Pretty much," he mumbled. He crossed his arms and dropped them unexpectedly on the keyboard. He buried his head into them.

Kelsi visibly jumped at the abrupt change in tune. She looked at him and felt sad for him. He looked absolutely pathetic. She reached out slowly and rested her hand on his shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze.

What she would have expected was a smile, but never the hug that suddenly followed after she saw that tears were steadily running down his face.

As Jason hugged her close to him, face buried in her shoulder, her arms hovered awkwardly around his frame. Her heart pounded in her chest as he pulled her tighter to him.

Hesitantly, she wrapped her arms around him, her hands gently rubbing his back. He was shaking. She took calming breaths and at the same inhaled his scent. His hair tickled her nose and cheeks.

"Sh. It's okay, Jase. I'm here," she said softly into his ear.

Jason looked up at her face and had a sudden urge to kiss her, which was exactly what he did that shocked his companion. His lips were only on hers for about two seconds before his senses finally came back to him. He practically flew out of her arms. Her face showed signs of confusion, embarrassment and hurt.

His wiped his eyes and cheeks with his sleeves. He gulped in air and just sat there, staring at her.

There was a knock on the door and both teens turned their heads to look. Principal Matsui was at the door, with what resembled an uncomfortable look on his face.

"Ah, Jason, I've finally found you," Principal Matsui said.

"Is something wrong, Principal Matsui?" Jason asked, his voice hoarse. He saw Kelsi turn back around to the piano, obviously avoiding his eyes.

"There's someone who's here to meet you. Why don't you go to my office?" the principal said.

"Um, okay, sir," he said and walked past him.

"Ms Nielson," Principal Matsui said, nodding at her, admiring her talent.

"Good morning, Principal Matsui," she said quietly.

She heard him leave and the door swing close. Her fingers immediately ceased playing. She leaned her forehead against the piano and sighed, only one thought in her mind.

_Why?_

Jason walked with his hands in his pocket towards Principal Matsui's office. He'd been in there about six times during his whole time in high school, usually on punishments. This was the first time that it wasn't going to be a punishment.

He nodded at the secretary and walked into the office without knocking. A man with black hair sat on the green couch in the office.

"Um, excuse me?" Jason asked. His voice was thick, and he cursed himself for his moment of temporary weakness.

The man turned around and Jason saw his eyes widen in shock and his jaw slacken slightly. "Jason?"

Jason became nervous. How on earth did this man know his name?

"It really is you. Look at how much you've grown," the man said, looking at him fondly.

"Excuse me, but who are you?" he asked.

"Jason, it's me. Your dad," the man said.

Jason suddenly felt his world caving in on him, suffocating him. He couldn't breathe as he stared at the man's face, aged with lines. This was his father? The one that only a few days prior had said that he hadn't wanted to get to know him or see him at all? What on earth was he doing here?

"What on earth are you doing here?" he asked coldly, glaring at the man who claimed to be his father. Since he had no pictures, he couldn't exactly confirm it because he no longer remembered how he looked like.

"Your mother called," he said softly.

"Oh?" Jason crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Jason, I'm-"

"Sorry?" he sneered. "Dad, no, no, you don't qualify as my dad. A dad would have been there for his kids, to raise them and to love them, not abandon them during the first sign of trouble. Coach Bolton was more of a father figure to me than anyone else. Oh, wait, you wouldn't know who Coach Bolton is, though, would you? Because you were never there.

"Mom, Jess and I are doing fine without you. And why I called you, I don't know. And frankly, I'm not going to give you an answer.

"I've come with a decision, _dad_," he said sarcastically. "Last night, actually, while I was pathetically feeling sorry for myself, asking myself why on earth my own father didn't even want me?"

"It wasn't that I didn't want you, Jason, you have to understand that. My parents, at the time, didn't like your mother much, so I had to leave you, Jessie and your mother. I know I shouldn't have done that. I should've gone back to your mother," he tried to explain.

Jason shook his head slowly. "I'm sorry, dad. You had about ten years worth of chances. We've all moved on. Just know, dad, that at one point in my life, I did love you. But then again," he turned around to leave, "how can you love someone you never knew?"

To the shock of the basketball team, Jason walked into the gym later that afternoon.

"Jason, what're you doing here?" Coach Bolton asked.

"I've come to ask to rejoin the basketball team," he said nervously.

Coach Bolton looked at the team who had gathered behind him. "Your call, Troy," he said. "You're the captain."

"Show us what you can do, and maybe we'll return your uniform," Troy said, a hint of a smile on his face.

Jason smiled genuinely for the first time in weeks.

"I think you guys just about killed me, man," Jason groaned, holding his side as he walked with Troy, Chad and Zeke after practice.

"Dude, we're just glad you're back," Chad said, hitting his shoulder lightly.

Jason rolled his eyes. "You guys missed me that much?" he asked sarcastically.

"Nah, we didn't miss you at all," said Troy. "We were doing fine, weren't we guys?"

"Yeah," Zeke and Chad said, nodding.

"Oh, I feel the love in the air," Jason said, and the four of them laughed. This was how it was supposed to be. _Best friends till the end. _Jason couldn't believe how gay that thought sounded.

As they continued joking and mucking about, Jason's eyes spotted a familiar white house. "Hey, guys, I'll catch up with you guys, later, alright? There are some things I have to settle first," he said.

"Whatever man. Oh, and there's practice tomorrow before school. Be there," Troy said, pointing at him as he walked down the sideway with Chad while Zeke crossed the road to get to his place. "Oh and Cross?"

"Yeah?"

"Good luck!"

Jason nodded and muttered a "Thanks."

Kelsi sat on her bed with her keyboard on her lap, just running her fingers over random keys to see if the sound went with each other. A song book sat open next to her. There were random scribbles around the page, some of them being recent entries.

She heard the doorbell ring. She sighed. "Nick! John! Go answer the door!"

Her younger brother John glared at her from the doorway but ran down anyway after a scathing, "Yes, your majesty!" His identical twin ran after him. They were twelve years old.

Nick came running back upstairs. "It's for you."

"Who is it?"

"Jason," John said simply, rolling his eyes. "You could do better, you know."

Kelsi sighed. What was he doing here?

"I told you, you turd. I'm not dating him," Kelsi said, grabbing a shirt and pulling it on over the sleeveless top she was wearing.

"Whatever," John and Nick said at the same time.

"Very mature, both of you," she told him. She walked downstairs and went to the living room but he wasn't there.

"He's out on the porch," Mark said, who was playing the piano.

Kelsi had a tight smile on her face as she nodded at her father. "Okay. Thanks, daddy." She could see the outline of his head through the window from he was sitting. She walked towards the door but before going out, took a deep breath. "Calm yourself, Kels. Just don't mention the kiss," she mumbled to herself.

Jason looked up immediately when he heard the door open. Kelsi came out in a shirt that was a bit big for her and a pair of sweatpants. It was the most casual he had ever seen her.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hey," he said, just as softly. He stood up and gestured to the seat next to him.

She joined him there and she swung her legs in nervousness. "So, um, what're you doing here?"

"I rejoined the basketball team," Jason told her.

"Really?"

He nodded at her, but after that, his face fell slightly. "And you know that visit Principal Matsui said I had earlier during free period?" His face flushed slightly, which prompted Kelsi's own cheeks to redden.

"Who was it?"

"My dad," he said quietly. Kelsi gave a small gasp and stared at him. "Apparently, my mom called him. I don't know when, but she did. So he came to try and explain things."

"Did you let him?"

"Not really," he said, eyes downcast and feeling a little guilty. "I was mad. I mean, you'd expect that right?"

"Well, yeah," Kelsi said, agreeing with him. If her father suddenly disappeared and then reappeared in her life without a sound, she'd be angry as hell too.

"But, I don't know. Maybe it's for the best. Maybe it's just time for me to let go of childish fantasies of a happy family. Because as far as I'm concerned, Jess, mom and I _are_ a happy family."

Kelsi smiled and hugged him. "I'm proud of you," she said.

"Thanks," he said. He scratched the back of his head. "And that's not the only reason why I came here."

She stiffened. "Jason," she started.

"No, Kels, just let me say something. You know how I said that we would have been better off as friends after the party two months ago? I was lying. I don't think we'd have been better off as friends.

"What I'm trying to say, Kels, is that I like you. I really, really like you. Not just because you're pretty, but because you're smart, you're talented, and overall, you're just a really amazing person. Getting to know you these past few weeks were great. I think you're the first girl to ever really look at me without thinking I'm an idiot.

"So, I'm sitting here on your porch, awaiting either acceptance or rejection. It's your call. If you-"

Kelsi kissed him to shut him up. His eyes widened but closed once more as he pressed his hand behind her neck to bring her closer, responding to her kiss gently and slowly.

When they pulled apart, all they could say was, "Wow."

Inside, her family smiled.

Jason went home that night feeling extremely happy. At dinner, he was spazzing out as usual and was talking up a storm. It was the first time in ages that he, Jessie and their mother laughed that much in a long. They all resolved to never talk about the man they once called dad.

Jason knew when he went to bed that night, that he hadn't felt happier in a long time.

End.


End file.
